The Whirl Islands (Japanese: うずまきじまWhirlpool Islands) are a small archipelago located between the mainland of Johto and Cianwood City, on Route 41. Beneath the sea, a maze of dark caves sprawl, with explorers able to travel between the four islands with some amount of difficulty. Deep within these caves, Lugia can be found.

Named after the dangerous whirlpools that surround them, some parts of the Whirl Islands are mysterious and largely inaccessible. Children in Olivine City are told that bad kids are sent to the islands.

As explained in Pokémon SoulSilver, the Whirl Islands used to be one large island. At some point in time, there were two countries fighting over the island. Lugia, the guardian of the island, got upset and cast lightning bolts to tear the island into four pieces. It then disappeared into the deep end of the waterfall basin, longing for the invisible trust between people and Pokémon to manifest once more.

Generation IV

In the anime

Map of the Whirl Islands in the anime

The depiction of the islands is far different in the anime. Far from being deserted, it contains many towns and other inhabitable areas. The Whirl Islands are home to the Whirl Cup, a competition for WaterPokémon Trainers held once every three years.

Rumors circulate that families of Lugia reside there. A mother Lugia and her baby, Silver, were sought by Dr. Namba and did, in fact, reveal themselves.

There are four main islands, with many smaller ones scattered throughout. Together, the islands in the archipelago form a spiral shape.

In the manga

In the Pokémon Adventures manga

The Whirl Islands first appeared in the Pokémon Adventures manga in Really Remoraid, where Morty was able to track the location of Gold and Silver at Lt. Surge's request. Having been nursed back to health by the Entei that had just left, the two awaken to find that Gold lost his backpack again (along with several of his other belongings), and Silver was missing the Red Gyarados he caught at the Lake of Rage. After fighting off a herd of Sandslash, the two come across Surge, who then returns them. However, there was a catch: before he could even inquire information regarding the Masked Man, the three were attacked by the wild Lugia that inhabited the islands, quite a berserk one that rampaged firing Aeroblasts left and right. After a tough battle during which they are joined by Crystal and their startersallevolve, they try to it in a Poké Ball, only to find out someone else, later revealed to be the Masked Man himself, did so before them.

After the incident, the three fail to track it down even with the Pokédexes' Area function, and soon Silver flies off on his own to the fourth and final island, in which Lance's hidden chamber resides. By using the three Water-typeHM moves available at the time (Whirlpool, Waterfall, and Surf), he is able to enter it and acquire information from Lance, during which he returns the Tyranitar he borrowed.

Much later, in the HeartGold & SoulSilver chapter, Silver returns to Lance's chamber again, only to be joined by an angry Clair who demanded to know what he did to her cousin, who had recently gone missing. They are soon attacked by Petrel's many Koffing.